Reading, Sleep, Attention, Grief (Vandal Live at UC-Berkeley)
About this episode
The episode discusses insomnia, attention, and immersion in literature, featuring various guests and analyses related to The American Vandal.
An episode recorded as part of the Modes of Reading Today Symposium , hosted by the Townsend Center For The Humanities begins with a discussion of John Donne's insomnia and Wilfred Bion's undigested nightmares, followed by a vigorous discussion of attention, sleep, and immersion as they relate to literature and criticism [39:00], after which the symposium's organizer (and host of the Psychoanaliterature podcast) flips the studio for some analysis of The American Vandal 's creator [90:00]. Cast (in order of appearance): Matt Seybold, David Marno, Yael Segalovitz, Jonathan Kramnick, Toril Moi, Emma Lieber, Nicholas Baer, Dora Zhang, Anne-Lise François, Farah Bakaari, Sina Dell'Anno Dates Recorded: February 19-20, 2026 Music: Danny Weiss Quartet, Moby, L. D. Miller For more about this episode, please visit TheAmericanVandal.com
People in this episode
Host: Matt Seybold
Guests: David Marno, Yael Segalovitz, Jonathan Kramnick, Toril Moi, Emma Lieber, Nicholas Baer, Dora Zhang, Anne-Lise François, Farah Bakaari, Sina Dell'Anno
Topics covered
- literature
- attention
- sleep
- grief
- insomnia
- criticism
- psychoanalysis
Keywords
- insomnia
- attention
- literature
- grief
- psychoanalysis
- criticism
- symposium
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Townsend Center For The Humanities, Psychoanaliterature
Books & works: The American Vandal, Modes of Reading Today Symposium
More episodes of The American Vandal
- Reading Machines (Vandal Live at Berkeley)
- Close Reading Is Having A Moment (Vandal Live at UC-Berkeley)
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